Let me preface this by saying it won't affect my actual enjoyment of the film (a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet, afterall) but I do think I preferred the original title.

Maybe "There and Back Again" isn't perfect (Jackson is right that Bilbo already got "there" in DoS) but naming the film after 1 battle scene, in a film that will have multiple other battles (Laketown, the Necromancer, and other stuff I'm sure) seems odd.

Plus, I liked that "There and Back Again" was thematically linked to LOTR -- via the title of Bilbo's book and via Sam's line in the ROTK EE ("We're going there and back again, just like Mr. Bilbo").

It always kind of bugged me that the second film had the title Tolkien used for the entire tale. But with the three movie split it really became an issue imho.

Bot5A for movie III and TABA used for the entire set is a very good idea.

Although the battle is only one event of this movie, it is the major event happening and connected to almost all other major plotpoints (kind of sparked - at least in its ultimate shape - by Smaug's death, prescedented by all the politics and finger-pointing, subsequented by the deaths and the journey home etc).

25 minutes is also good news... I do not like extended cuts that go totally nuts on the running time. And the music part is great news for sure.

(PS: Freedom of Opinion - fair enough. But what some people post as replies on Facebook is really poor.) “All good stories deserve embellishment."

Praise is subjective. And so is criticism.

"I am afraid it is only too likely to be true what you say about the critics and the public. I am dreading the publication for it will be impossible not to mind what is said. I have exposed my heart to be shot at."

i honestly thought they were going to announce a fourth film when i was reading that!!

im ok with this, it isnt very tolkien, but the title now suits the cgi computer game action fest the hobbit has become, for good or bad, im excited for the huge battle now, but mourning the innocence of the hobbit thats lost. This is a serious journey, not a hobbit walking-party.

I really would have preferred they stay with The Hobbit: There and Back Again but this is alright. It still feels Tolkien like. I do like that the Box Set will be called The Hobbit: There and Back Again though.

Loving that DOS is getting 25 mins. That's about what I thought it would get and I'm hoping it has lots of slower moments to make this film flow just a little bit better.

Howard Shore's involvement is the best news here... And at least the title isn't 'Into The Fire'!
[In reply to]

Can't Post

As much as I loved AUJ:EE it didn't quite feel like a real EE. The 13 minutes were fine and they added just enough to make it worthwhile, but 25 minutes AND new Howard Shore music? That's a proper Middle-Earth Extended Edition!

As for the title - it loses the Hobbit-ness of There and Back Again but it's perfectly understandable why it doesn't fit. The Battle of the Five Armies puts a bit too much emphasis on one aspect of the story (then again, The Return of the King does a similar thing) but it's not Into the Fire and that's a very good thing. So I'm happy with The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

... but the music was not specifically written for the scenes during the editing-process of the EE version. “All good stories deserve embellishment."

Praise is subjective. And so is criticism.

"I am afraid it is only too likely to be true what you say about the critics and the public. I am dreading the publication for it will be impossible not to mind what is said. I have exposed my heart to be shot at."

... actually, I think Bot5A encompasses more than RotK ever did (and gives less away).

I always wished the publisher back then had used "The War of the Ring" for books 5 & 6 of LotR.

Might seem strange for non-German speakers, but partly I am glad for this change because I hate the German "There and Back Again" ("Hin und wieder Zurück") and love how the German term for Bot5A ("Die Schlacht der Fünf Heere") sounds. One of the very very very few Tolkien terms that have a better flow in German than in English imho. “All good stories deserve embellishment."

Praise is subjective. And so is criticism.

"I am afraid it is only too likely to be true what you say about the critics and the public. I am dreading the publication for it will be impossible not to mind what is said. I have exposed my heart to be shot at."

I thought he was about to announce a fourth movie. I like "The Battle of Five Armies" as a title, and it's MUCH better than "Into the Fire", but TABA is still the best title.

WOOHOO on the 25 extra minutes!!! Hopefully that's what we're actually going to get. When AUJ first came out PJ also said the EE would have about 25 more minutes. Of course, they're probably farther along on the EE for DOS.

You pretty much got it right, though there were some scenes where either Jackson did not like the music (Bilbo talking to Elrond), or he just edited in music from elsewhere in the score (Thranduil and the gems)

The Battle of 5 Armies are exact words from Tolkien himself and a catchier title than TABA.And in marketing terms it is better imo.I really liked the title TABA myself and i am glad that it will be used as a title for the whole trilogy at least!

And DOS EE over 25 minutes!!I hope it reaches any magical number between 30-35.I would be delighted. "Obsession and narrow-mindness is the trend of the 2000's and synonyms to many Tolkien fanatics"

... PJ & Company's story intentions for the name change for one second, I am sure that some marketing people at WB may be quite happy with this new title.

I just hope they do not start trying to hide big parts of the movie, again. Imho that strategy failed with Smaug who should have been on posters (at least the way he was used on the China and Twitter posters). The battle and other highlights of TBot5A should be used in a similar fashion the Pelennor was used for RotK. “All good stories deserve embellishment."

Praise is subjective. And so is criticism.

"I am afraid it is only too likely to be true what you say about the critics and the public. I am dreading the publication for it will be impossible not to mind what is said. I have exposed my heart to be shot at."

Hated the new title at first but within a few minutes I started to really like it :D I would have preferred it to stay "There and Back Again" just because I love how vague and Tolkein it is but "The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies" is a pretty good title too.

I like to see it as the culmination of the entire Hobbit series. Almost every encounter and event in the the trilogy directly affects BO5A (as in the actual battle). The actual title IMO isn't referring to the actual battle, it's just using it to symbolize and embody the massive culmination of events and series of consequences that will be shown in the third film, such as Smaug attacking Laketown, all the death from that and bo5a, the return of Sauron because of the ignorance and naivety of people. It's like one big hangover from AUJ and DOS.

Remember that Jackson overstated the amount of extra material for AUJ. Hopefully that won't be true this time around. 'But very bright were the stars upon the margin of the world, when at times the clouds about the West were drawn aside.'

I was a little surprised to see this change so late in the game, but, I do appreciate them reflecting on whatever cut of the film they had and knowing that a change needed to be made. I'm sure that wasn't an easy decision--for both PJ and WB. In the end, I'm not kicking and screaming about it. None of the three titles were going to be 'original' in the sense that FOTR/TTT/ROTK were. They all had to be artificially made to feel like they were part of Tolkien's world. This one, however, happens to be a direct phrase from this portion of the book.

I think it was at Buttnumbathon with Harry Knowles, and we only got 13 minutes But this estimate seems like it'll be more accurate as it was given a lot later in the game where they're probably pretty much done with the EE. Perhaps that is why PJ and Co waited so long to announce DOS EE length because of what happened last time.